The Final Goodbye
by Seth Bramwell
Summary: Set near the end of "The Real Folk Blues Part II", Faye goes out to try to save Spike from walking into his own death - but who will save who? PLEASE R & R!


The Final Goodbye  
By Allan North  
  
Faye watched the Bebop's main hatch close as she collapsed to the ground,   
exhausted and broken from what she had just witnessed. Spike was going to die. He was   
not going to die the way anyone should, by matters beyond his control, but by his own   
will and volition. He was walking into it willingly, and all for what? Julia was dead.   
She had been listening at the doorway as he and Jet had eaten; she knew it all. There   
was nothing to be done for a dead woman. All one could do for the dead was mourn   
them. What could be done for the living was far greater… and surely Spike should have   
been able to see it. The tears burned more than any pain Faye had ever experienced her   
tragic past as she raised her Glock 30 Automatic to the side of her head and her face   
twisted into a pained cry. Squeezing her eyes shut, she pulled the trigger as she had   
done so many times before…  
  
Click. That was all. No gunshot, no lethal bullet ripping through her, ending her   
pain. Only a tease of a release. She realized with a sick feeling she had spent all of her   
ammunition firing at Spike's back as he had left without a word. How could he have left   
like that? How could he not know? Faye stared straight ahead as she thought about their   
times together, the times they had been truly alone… It had been Faye who had slapped   
him for insulting her humming when he was bandaged head to toe, her who had stolen   
the orange he had been craving the second time, her who had teased him, called him   
lunkhead, who had resolved to never show him that… she had truly cared. Every time   
she had come to his aid, every rescue she had attempted, had only been for the bounty   
money, only for the glory as far as Spike knew. Faye's eyes went as wide as they had   
been in the video of her 13-year old counterpart as she realized… Oh, my God, how   
could he have known when I never had the courage to tell him… she thought to herself.   
Silently, Faye cursed every circumstance that had made her the person she was, that had   
stolen the trusting innocence of that young cheerleader… Whitney, Bacchus, her   
accident, the Gate Tragedy… they had been the people and the incidents that had robbed   
her of the mind she had possessed over 50 years ago, the mind of a person who was able   
to love and have that love returned, the mind that never held the constant fear that   
everything she loved could be lost again.  
  
As Faye's mind flashed back over her memories… of Spike, of her past, of her   
enemies, the cowgirl came to a decision. Steeling herself, she stood up and walked to   
the living area of the ship, where Jet stood silently, facing the bay windows of the ship   
and watching the Swordfish II fly away toward the Red Dragon Headquarters. Faye's   
quiet, clam tone surprised herself as she spoke. "Jet, I'm taking the Redtail."  
  
Jet didn't bother to face her. "I told you, it won't fly. Your thruster's damaged   
and I don't have time to repair it now." He said gruffly.  
  
"Fix it." Faye said in a monotone.  
  
"Forget it!" Jet snapped, spinning around to face her. His face scowled at her as   
he picked up the dirty dishes from the meal he had shared with Spike moments earlier.   
"I've got my own problems to take care of… I've got to do the dishes, wash the   
windows, and get the Bebop running again! You want your little piece of crap fixed, do   
it yourself!"  
  
"Damn it, Jet, Fix it!" Faye repeated insistently.  
  
"No!" Jet snarled as he stomped to the kitchen.   
  
Faye looked at the former cop with anger. "Don't you care at all? Don't you want   
to go save him? Or did they take your heart out when they took your arm?" she yelled   
accusingly.  
  
Jet stopped and turned to face Faye. His hardened expression was gone. "I used   
to be known as the Black Dog, Faye. I was called that because when I put my teeth into   
someone, I never let go." Jet said softly. "But even an old dog has to know when he   
can't hold on any more. Spike has gone out there for a reason, and not you… or I… or   
anyone else can stop him."  
  
Faye's eyes narrowed. "So that's it? You're just going to let your partner die?"  
  
Jet stared at Faye, unable to answer. Finally, he turned away and said quietly,   
more to himself than to her, "It's his decision and I can't change it." Faye frowned and   
hurried off to the Bebop's hanger. Had she lingered a moment longer, she would have   
seen the rarest of the rare sights in the universe… the sight of tears rolling down the   
Black Dog's face.  
  
Faye entered the hangar and eyed her trusty zip craft. Just as Jet had said, the   
Red Dragon missiles had demolished the main thruster. If she was lucky, she'd get a   
couple more miles out of the Redtail in its present state. She sighed as she climbed into   
the cockpit and turned the ignition key to try to confirm her suspicions. Sure enough, the   
mono system booted up and immediately ran a diagnostic that warned her of the thruster   
damage and the imminent system failure.   
  
Completely worn down, Faye collapsed on the controls and sobbed. There had to   
be a way to save Spike. There just had to be… Faye looked up desperately, and saw the   
answer hanging by Jet's workbench. The ignition key to the Hammerhead. Jet had taken   
the ship to see that old shaman earlier, and had returned with it in working order. Since   
the ship had been in the hangar the entire time, it had been well protected from the Red   
Dragon's assault.   
  
Faye looked around the room for a second, then ran to the hook by the   
workbench and grabbed the ignition key from its place. She crossed the hangar to the   
large craft, and only hoped her instinct and skill would enable her to fly it. The cockpit   
opened for her and she climbed inside, her slender body easily fitting in Jet's large seat.   
With a quick motion, she inserted the key and booted up the mono system. Fortunately,   
apart from a slightly different thruster control, the Hammerhead's controls weren't all   
that different from the Redtail's, and Faye was able to pilot the ship easily. Faye didn't   
even bother to call Jet. She simply fired at the hangar doors as she had done the first time   
she had met the Bebop crew and blasted the Hammerhead through the open hatch and   
flew it away.   
  
On the deck of the Bebop, Jet dropped the rag he was using to clean the windows   
as the hangar doors blasted open and he watched his ship fly away toward the city.   
"Damn it! That stubborn little…" Jet muttered as he grabbed a transmitter to call his   
ship and order Faye to bring it the hell back right that second. However, as he reached   
for the call button, something in him stopped himself, and he just watched the   
Hammerhead fly away. "Good luck." He said quietly as his flyer disappeared in the   
distance.   
  
In the Hammerhead, Faye pumped the throttle controls with uncertainty. The   
ship was proving a bit more difficult to maneuver than she had first thought, but she was   
still holding her own. In the distance, Faye could see the tall building she had watched   
the Swordfish II fly to… the seat of the Red Dragon Syndicate. The bounty hunter   
chewed her lip as she gunned the large ship toward the building, noting with uneasiness   
that extensive damage that had been down to the rooftop, probably by Spike himself.   
  
He has to be alive. He just has to be… Faye thought to herself as her mind   
flashed back to so many memories… the times they had come for her, the ways they had   
saved her, the way they still took her in even after she had stolen from them and cheated   
them time and again.  
  
Slowly, the rooftop came into view as Faye drew nearer. Shortly after, the   
figures on the roof became clear… A group of gangsters were closing around a body   
collapsed in a pool of blood at the bottom of a ruined staircase. Vicious. That must be   
Vicious. Oh, God, let that be Vicious... Faye silently begged in her mind. That was   
when her eyes darted to the top of the stairs and saw another body face down in blood.. a   
body whose head was covered with long white hair. The sight of that body sent a chill   
through Faye's being. Vicious. But then that one on the stairs must be… Faye yanked   
hard on the steering control and whipped the Hammerhead around to pass the building   
again. As she flew overhead, Faye looked down and her eyes opened wide as she   
recognized the lanky form of Spike's body through his coat and that hair… the poofy   
green mess that she had always laughed at. Now, it was only a thing to mourn.  
  
Faye's mouth opened in a silent sob as she choked horribly on her emotions.   
Tears clouded her eyes as the Hammerhead flew straight forward and Red Dragon thugs   
watched the ship with curiosity. Handcuffs. Yelling. Accusations. Maddening twit.   
Stupid lunkhead. Sexist pig. Show-off know-it-all… Faye thought as she squeezed her   
eyes shut and tried desperately to eradicate the image of Spike's lifeless body on those   
stairs. My rival, my competition… A loud beeping suddenly sounded from the mono   
system. Faye opened her eyes and looked at the computer screen. The words flashed in   
bright red on the screen. DANGER. COLLISION COURSE. OBJECT DETECTED IN   
FLIGHT PATH.   
  
The words meant nothing to Faye as she stared blankly at the approaching   
skyscraper and held the controls in place. Spike… My rival… My competition… My   
enemy… I love you. Faye thought with desperation as the communication hail suddenly   
sounded. Her hand automatically reached for the answer button as the ship raced toward   
the building.  
  
The communication screen opened and Faye's eyes popped open wider than ever   
as Spike stared at her from the computer screen. "Don't." the image said simply. Faye   
seemed to realize the dangerous course she was on for the first time and quickly yanked   
the controls back up in time to pull the Hammerhead into an upward climb, scaling the   
side of the building she had almost crashed into. The ship continued to climb as Faye   
leveled it to a more acceptable angle. Soon, the Hammerhead had exited the   
atmosphere of Mars and was in space. Faye hardly noticed the change in surroundings as   
she stared at the screen in disbelief. "Spike?" she asked in a whisper.  
  
"Yeah." Spike replied, his face serious and his tone urgent.  
  
"But- You're- I mean, I saw…"  
  
"I know, Faye. I'm not around anymore. My burden has been lifted."  
  
"I want mine lifted too." Faye replied softly.  
  
"No. It's not time." Spike said with a stony face.  
  
"Damn it, Spike, I've been alive for over 70 years! I've lost my family, my   
friends, my innocence, and now-" Faye choked on a sob- "And now you."  
Spike smiled slightly. "So you do care."  
Faye looked at the monitor with sincerity. "Of course I do, Spike. I have for a   
long time."   
  
"I know." Spike answered.  
  
"You knew?"   
  
"Even if I hadn't known, how could I not know after the way you tried to stop   
me?" Spike asked.  
  
"And don't you care???" Faye said in an accusatory tone.  
  
"Yes. Very much." Spike replied.  
  
"Then why did you leave me?" Faye asked through her tears.  
  
"Because there was someone who needed to be free. Someone who needed me   
more than you or Jet or anyone else. And I couldn't exist knowing I hadn't done   
everything I could for that person."  
  
"Julia." Faye said softly. Spike nodded in confirmation. "But Julia was dead   
already."   
  
"Dead, but not free. And alone." Spike explained.  
  
"And now I'm alone." Faye said sadly.   
  
"No. You're not."  
  
"Yes, I am!" Faye screamed at the monitor. "There's nothing else for me   
outside of you and the Bebop!"  
  
Spike grimaced. "Then you're more blind than I ever thought."  
  
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Faye demanded.  
  
"It means-" Spike paused for a moment- "that there is someone else. Someone   
who cares about you and will take care of you. Someone who's cared about you for a   
long, long time."  
  
Faye's eyes filled with emotion as she looked at Spike's face. "Jet." She said in   
an almost inaudible whisper.  
  
"Yes." Spike replied. "The two of you can continue for each other. Believe me,   
Jet wants to. But he'll never say it first."  
  
"Why not?"   
  
"Why wouldn't you?" Spike responded.  
  
"I didn't want to get hurt, to get left behind again- Oh…" Faye replied.   
Suddenly, she understood.  
  
Spike's voice continued. "Faye Valentine, I've cared about you a lot for long   
time. In a way, I guess you could even say I loved you. But not in the way you wanted.   
That piece of my heart will always belong to someone else. I can't help that."  
  
Faye looked at the monitor once more with teary eyes as the image started to blur   
with distortion. "What's happening?" Faye asked with alarm.  
  
"It's almost time." Spike replied through the interference.   
  
"Time?" Faye asked. Suddenly the screen filled with static. "Spike? Spike!!!"   
she yelled desperately, hitting the screen with her fist. The static cleared and the screen   
went dead. To Faye's left, she saw a star burn out. It was Spike's star. "Goodbye." She   
whispered with despair. Numbly, Faye turned the controls and began the Hammerhead   
on a return flight path to Mars. Back to the Bebop, back to Jet.  
  
The journey was a short one, and soon Faye was piloting Jet's ship back through   
the damaged hangar doors.   
  
When she climbed out of the monopod cockpit, she found the former ISSP   
officer waiting for her, leaning on his workbench with a scowl on his face and his arms   
folded across his chest. "Well, it's about time." He growled. "What the hell do you   
think you're doing, just taking off with my ship like that?"  
  
Faye looked at her comrade with sad eyes, and Jet's tone softened. "You were   
too late, weren't you?" he asked quietly.  
  
Faye nodded slowly. "I'm sorry." Jet said.   
  
Faye stepped closer to Jet and said her next words in a soft tone that was very   
unlike her- "But I realized something, Jet."  
  
"Oh? What's that?" Jet inquired.  
  
"That there's far more to be done for the living than the dead. You can only   
mourn the dead… but you can remember them and still know them through the living."   
Faye answered. With that, she leaned into Jet and hugged him close. Faye felt Jet's flesh   
and blood arm wrap around her as she rested her head on his shoulder, and the two   
bounty hunters stood as one in remembrance of their fallen friend, knowing this moment   
was not just an ending, but also a new beginning.   
  
The sun set and the light disappeared from the bay windows. The Martian moon   
now bathed the Bebop in a soft white light, a light that was a mere fraction of the bright,   
almost blinding white light on another plane of existence where Spike Spiegel now found   
himself.  
  
Spike stepped forward through the white light. He was tried, and felt as if he   
could sleep for a thousand years. However, he felt his exhaustion fade with each passing   
step. Looking down at his suit, Spike could see the stains of both his blood and   
Vicious', and realized that despite the bright light, the red stains were becoming less and   
less visible until they were completely gone. His brown overcoat was also changing,   
and becoming a perfect white. In the distance, the light grew brighter, and Spike   
shielded his eyes from its intensity.   
  
That was when he saw the figure. Recognizing it in a heartbeat, Spike ran   
toward the figure, and stopped just short of it. "Julia." He said in a whisper.  
  
Julia looked at him with a serene smile. She was still dressed in the black outfit   
she had been wearing when she had died, but was now also clad in a coat of pure white   
just as Spike was. For the first time in years, Julia did not look sad as she smiled. "I've   
been waiting, Spike."  
  
"I know."   
  
"Did you take care of what your unfinished business? Your friends?" Julia   
asked.  
  
"Yeah." Spike replied with a tired smile. "It'll be hard, but I think- No, I know-   
they'll be all right."  
  
Julia's smile held more love and happiness than Spike would have ever dreamed   
possible. "Then it's really over, isn't it?" she asked. "We've earned our rest, haven't   
we?"  
  
Spike smiled warmly at his love. "Yeah. We have." Spike's arms reached out   
weightlessly and held Julia in a close embrace.   
  
"C'mon." Julia said softly. "Annie and Mao are waiting."  
  
The two walked away, hand in hand once again, as the bright light of millions of   
condensed stars engulfed them for eternity.  
  
THE END 


End file.
